Eternal Financial Advisory Pte Ltdis licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to provide Independent Private Wealth Advisory and Management services in Singapore. We take the holistic approach whereby we combine collective investment scheme with other issues such as risk management (e.g creditor protection and critical illness), tax planning and addressing the legal and contractual aspects of financial products to create customised solutions that best suit our clients.
Eternal Financial Advisory Pte Ltd is the only Financial Advisory firm that has been selected and awarded The 2008 Enterprise 50 Awards by International Enterprise Singapore and Spring Singapore on 21st Nov 2008.
Through a stringent selection process, the Enterprise 50 Awards recognises and honours the top 50 list of companies in Singapore that signify entrepreneurial excellence.
Freddy Sim, Chairman & Strategic Coach, shares more here.
Freddy, what inspired you to establish Eternal Financial Advisory Pte Ltd?
I went to USA in 1992 when I qualified for the international prestigious Insurance industry award, the "Million Dollar Round Table" (MDRT) convention, which has stringent qualification criteria set by the MDRT committee. Thereafter, I continued to attend every year for the past 17 years. From that MDRT exposure, I observed that there was a strong trend and presence of Independent Financial Advisors (IFA) in USA, which was in contrast to only the ‘tied agency’ system allowed in Singapore.
I believed strongly that IFA was the way of the future, and I always had this dream that IFA would become a reality in Singapore, and that I could become an IFA to help my clients plan for their financial future in an unbiased manner. After waiting 15 years, my dream finally came true when our government passed the legislation in parliament to allow IFA in Singapore. That’s when I decided to set up Eternal Financial Advisory Pte Ltd (an IFA platform) in 2005, to help groom candidates using our proven successful knowledge, skills, technique etc to be a successful IFA representative.
Our Vision is to be the best and most highly acclaimed boutique Independent Private Wealth Manager in Singapore. Our Mission is about being committed to meeting a dire social need by serving the community as professional financial service providers. We strive to give our clients the power of options and knowledge in problem solving and financial planning unlike any other firm in the industry.
Congratulations on winning the Enterprise 50 Award 2008! What’s the secret of your success?
Firstly, we believe in the economically viable and effective usage of intellectual resources and comprehensive research complemented with a strong emphasis on integrity, disciplined teamwork and relationships for life.
Next, we are very focused and have lots of experience in the insurance industry. Ms Viviena Chin, our CEO, has been in the business for 13 years, and I have more than 18 years experience. To create an environment that enables our financial consultants to be successful,
Freddy (L)& Viviena (R) both have won the Top Producer & Top Manager Awards every year in their Tied Agency in the past.
Freddy had Court Of The Table qualification (Top 3 % advisers in the world) whereas Viviena had Top of the Table qualification (Top 1% advisers in the world) under MDRT platform. They both also have qualified consecutively for 17 years and 13 years respectively which brought them to be Life Member of MDRT (10 years qualification) under their belt.
To qualify year after year with Big revenue is like finding a needle in a ocean. They are advisers of the advisers and truly legends of their industry.
trust and good leadership is important, and for new consultants to have a mentor/coach who will guide and encourage them along. Therefore, Viviena and I conduct all our trainings personally, so that we can impart in them the right skills and knowledge to recommend the best financial advice and products to their clients.
Maintaining a stable wage structure for our employees is also important as our business is built on the skills and knowledge of our employees. So even though Singapore is in a recession, we have implemented other cost cutting measures rather than cut wages. Office space is a big ticket item, and we decided to relocate to Golden Mile Tower when the rent at our Bugis Junction office increased. Furthermore, to maintain an efficient operation, we also outsource functions such as accounting and IT to save on overhead costs too.
I liken the pursuit of success to fishing. It’s like this, if you want to catch big deep sea fish like Marlin, you need the right equipment like a powerful boat to take you out to sea, knowing which part of the sea Marlin like to swim, and having a strong fishing rod that can handle the Marlin’s huge size and weight. The parallel lessons that can be learned here is that in both fishing and financial consultancy, it all boils down to having sound and proper market knowledge, good research and the right techniques.
What’s your advice for people who are keen to become Financial Advisors?
I firmly believe that this is a sunrise industry with tremendous prospects, and we are also on the constant look-out for partnership opportunities as well as young and ambitious job seekers who want to advance their careers with us.
At Eternal Financial Advisory Pte Ltd, we are looking to groom the next generation of entrepreneurs and successful financial advisors. For those who are willing to work hard, we will give them excellent training and good profit sharing. Therefore, the sky is the limit when you are a part of us.
